These 4 New Updates from Uber and Lyft That Can’t Be Ignored Before Developing an App Like Uber

May 7, 2018 1423

This post is for those taxi startups who want to create an app like Uber and Lyft. Here’re four new updates from these Goliaths, which you can’t miss before creating a ride-sharing app like Uber.

The ride-sharing economy has become one of the most recent trends and buzzwords of the last few years. With the rapid growth of businesses like Uber, Lyft, and other taxi giants, there are many startups, who are proposing the “Uber-like app” model, where drivers and riders come together using the ride-sharing app.

In the U.S. ride-sharing market, the Goliaths are Uber and Lyft, both have been making changes from driver pay to how surge pricing is shown to drivers. If you belong among one of those markets, then you may have noticed the changes. According to the latest report from TechCrunch, “Lyft has raised $600 million in new funding led by Fidelity Management & Research Company at a $15.1 billion valuation.”

On the other hand, with the total funding amount of $24.2 billion, Uber has raised $2 billion in Debt Financing round, and at a $120 billion valuation, this U.S. ride-hailing company has worth around 11.1 times revenue.

In this image, you can see the total funding of transportation giants, Uber and Lyft, by type.

Over the last several weeks, there has been a slew of updates from Uber and Lyft such as pay rise from some drivers to new Prime Time. However, some of these updates are live in only a few markets, but it is good that some of them will be rolled out soon to a market nearby.

Being a startup, if you are constantly seeking ways to incorporate more ride-sharing options for your customers in terms of apps like Uber and Lyft, then you need to check out the following new updates from these Goliath before creating an app like Uber and Lyft.

4 New Updates From Taxi Giants That You Can Consider Before Developing Apps Like Uber

1. Uber Raises Rates 5% to 10% and Increases Their Booking Fee

One of the recent updates, which you can’t miss is that Uber has announced that they were increasing driver pay rates. It always happens when Uber makes changes in terms of features, then the other ride-sharing app like Lyft also tries to adopt it for better. Uber has raised 5-10% in a total 11 cities in the United States, including San Francisco, Los Angeles, Orange County (CA), Boston, Vermont, Worcester, and Oxford.

The U.S. ride-sharing company, Uber also raised their booking fee in dozens of cities; however, most of which get an increase in the driver pay. This new update is not only in favor of your drivers, but it is also in favor of your business. If you are planning to create an app like Uber, then you as a startup can consider this new update that will be beneficial for both drivers and your business.

2. Lyft is Planning to Reveal More Payment Information to Drivers

One of the new updates from Lyft is that the company is planning to reveal more payment information to the drivers. Lyft is testing new earnings screen, which will allow drivers to view the full information of who-got-what in each fare. It will be similar to how Uber displays the full deal in each fare and will allow drivers to see how much Lyft took on each ride.

However, it is still tested in few cities by the company, but it seems like the ride-hailing app, Lyft plans to roll out a version of it to all the drivers in the United States over the coming weeks/months.

To build a successful business like Lyft, it is must to show your drivers and riders the full picture of each fare. So far, Lyft has not been showing the price and, as a result, the vast majority of criticism to show upfront pricing and driver commission creep has gone towards Uber.

Even though the ride-sharing giant, Lyft is doing the same exact thing, and it would be nice if either company told their riders what their effective commission is. Such updates maintain transparency between riders and company. And, transparency always works in business for better. Therefore, you as a startup needs to keep your eyes on this new update, and you can consider this during taxi app development.

3. Lyft is Replicating The Uber’s New Surge Pricing

Uber always likes to test its services in a specific area. If the surge is for Uber, then Prime Time is for Lyft. However, Lyft has always been testing a new and upgraded version of Prime Time.

It means that when demand for rides is higher as compared to the number of available drivers on the road, passengers may pay an extra percentage on top of the base ride amount. For instance, if the ride is $6 without Prime Time, costs the passenger $9 when 50% Prime Time is added.

The new version of Prime Time basically works by guaranteeing an amount of additional pay if the driver manages to drive into a Prime Time area. The new surge price can also benefit drivers in getting higher payments from the company. If you have planned to create apps like Uber, then you as a startup should also think about your drivers and their benefits like Uber and Lyft are doing.

4. Uber: Skip the Queue After a Short Airport Trip

This new update from Uber allows drivers who stake out the airport to cut back to the front of the line in the event that they get a short trip from the airport. Uber will show the pop-up message on the request screen if the trip is available for short trip protection. If the driver accepts the short trip, then they will be going back into the airport queue and jump to the front of the line for a fare that is probably longer and worth the original wait in the queue.

Moreover, this new update is definitely a welcome improvement for all those drivers, who are targeting airports for the rides. They don’t need to spend much time at airports. The feature called as airport shuttle service by Uber is worth including if you’re planning to create a taxi booking app like Uber. This is because nobody likes to wait for long hours as they did earlier in the traditional airport services. However, this new update is worth-considering to create a successful business model like Uber.

Wrapping Up

You’ve just checked out the new updates from the top U.S ride-sharing companies, including Uber and Lyft. It seems inevitable that the ride-sharing economy will continue to grow. Also, it is simply too powerful and efficient to disappear.

Being a ride-sharing startup company, if you believe that your taxi booking app idea could be as successful as Uber and Lyft, then you can discuss your idea with us. We’re a leading mobile app development company and have developed over 50 taxi booking app solutions with different features. Just fill-up the below-given form and our sales representative will right back to you as soon as possible.

In case, if you still have a query or confusion regarding I want to create an app from scratch, I am looking for long-term app development freelancers, the cost to develop a taxi app like Uber or I want complete solution for taxi booking services or something that works like Uber or Lyft, then you can get in touch with us through our contact us form. One of our sales representatives will revert to you as soon as possible.